Absolute Honour - 17 May

Dave Webb has revealed it was an ‘absolute honour’ to be appointed manager of Evo-Stik Southern League club Swindon Supermarine and says the opportunity was too good to turn down.

Webb left the hotseat at Uhlsport Hellenic League Premier outfit Highworth Town in order to take the equivalent role at the South Marston club, having won two trophies in four seasons at the Elms. Webb (pictured left) will continue to operate with Lee Spalding as his assistant, while it is hoped that Marine’s 2011/12 joint player-boss Gary Horgan, who days ago turned down the chance to become the club’s sole manager, will fulfil the role of first-team coach alongside Spalding (pictured right).

Having met with club officials on Monday night, a deal was quickly done to bring Webb to Marine and now he cannot wait to get started.

“Plans are in place for the club moving forward and I’m really excited about what we could potentially do,” he said in the Swindon Advertiser. “It’s an absolute honour. I’m going to get the opportunity to manage the best non-league team in the town and what more can you ask for? I had 12 great seasons at Highworth as a player and a manager but this opportunity might not come along again, and I just felt the timing was right. It’s just a fantastic opportunity and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Webb expanded on his plans to make Horgan a part of the coaching team, believing a player-coach role would suit the former joint boss ideally.

“Gary wants to continue to play and I think that’s extremely difficult to do when you’re trying to manage as well,” added Webb. " He’s still got something to offer as a player and I’m hoping to convince him that he can do that alongside a coaching role. I see him and Spud (Spalding) working together, they are both experienced and both have played a good level of football.”

Supermarine issued a statement to the press yesterday, in which the club thanked Horgan and fellow joint boss Matt Robinson for their efforts. The statement said: “The chairman (Keith Yeomans) and committee of Swindon Supermarine FC announce a new management team to take the football club into the 2012/13 season. They are pleased to welcome new manager Dave Webb and his assistant Lee Spalding to the Webb’s Wood Stadium. The former Highworth Town duo will take over the managerial position from joint managers Gary Horgan and Matt Robinson with immediate effect. The committee is hopeful that both Gary and Matt will still be involved as players and also Dave is speaking to Gary with a view of him assisting with the coaching of the players. The chairman and committee would like to publicly thank both Gary and Matt for their commitment and dedication over the last 15 months as joint managers in what were difficult times.”

Swindon Supermarine finished the season second from bottom of the Premier Division in the Evo-Stik Southern League, and unless they receive an unlikely reprieve, Webb will be masterminding their hopes of promotion back to the step 3 level next season.

In a press release issued by Highworth Town, club chairman Roland Haynes commented. "Dave and Lee have joined Southern League club Swindon Supermarine. I would like to thank both Dave and Lee for all the hard work they both have put into our club. Dave as been connected as both a player and a manager with Highworth Town for over 12 years and Lee was also connected to us for 6 years. We wish both of them all the success with their new club".

National League System Step 5 Review - 10 May

At a meeting of the Football Association Leagues Committee held today (9 May 2012) at Wembley Stadium the Final Report from the Step 5/6 Review Group, containing a number of recommendations was considered. 

By way of background, the Review Group was established by the Leagues Committee in 2011 to look at a possible reduction in the number of Step 5 divisions from 14 to 12 for the commencement of season 2013/2014.  Following an initial meeting with all competitions in July 2011 there followed an extensive consultation period during which all Step 5/6 competitions were met on an individual basis to seek their views on this matter.  The initial remit of the Group was altered to take into account the feedback from these meetings.  In the early part of 2012 the Group held a series of meetings to which all Step 5 leagues, their member clubs and County Football Associations were invited to consider the suggestion for change.

As a result of these meetings the Review Group, taking into account both the feedback from the discussions and correspondence received, complied their Final Report and the following recommendations were agreed by the Leagues Committee today. 

Players Wanted For Charity Support - 21 April

Footballers are wanted for a charity tournament to raise sponsorship for a Malmesbury pair who are planning to complete a 100-mile walk.

Ten teams of nine players are needed to come forward to play on Sunday, May 27, at the Corinium Stadium Indoor Arena Cirencester from 11am-4pm.

Graham Jobes and his daughter Becci, from Hanks Close, Malmesbury, will be taking on the 100-mile trek in July and are holding fundraisers in aid of Hope for Tomorrow and CLIC Sargent.

Anyone interested in joining the tournament can call Daniel Jobes on (01666) 825691 or 07990 787074, or email danieljobes11@hotmail.co.uk

Ciren Say No To Two League Drop - 20 April

Cirencester Town will contest next season's Evo-Stik Southern League Division One South and West after their relegation from the Premier Division.

The prospect of dropping a further level by choice to the Hellenic League was discussed at an open public meeting in the club last week attended by manager Brian Hughes, fans, committee members, sponsors and a sprinkling of players. Chairman Steve Abbley hosted the forum and left it to the room to decide at what level the club wanted to play their football next season.

The unanimous view was that they should remain in the Southern League, even though Abbley made it perfectly he was no longer prepared to bail out the club financially as he had done in the past. "I said 16 years ago when I became chairman that I would never bankroll players' wages," said Abbley. "For the last two seasons I have gone back on that and spent £60,000 each year. I am no longer prepared to do that. I am more than happy, however, to keep putting money into assets for the club that everyone can enjoy."

With dwindling gates – down to a seasonal low of 61 for the match with Arlesey in March – there is little prospect of financing the club through the turnstiles, so fans have pledged to organise more fund-raising events and to seek out commercial backers like current shirt sponsors Ssangyong and the Cotswold Efficient Energy Centre. Hughes is happy to continue as manager though the chairman admitted he would be working with a '50 per cent reduced budget'.

Major Match Appointment - 18 April

News has been received from the Football Association of the appointments for the four major FA club competitions and whilst no Hellenic clubs will be appearing in a final, though Shortwood United did give it a good run, a Hellenic Match Official has been appointed.

Sian Piret, an Oxfordshire FA Referee, in her first season as a Level Four match official has received a further honour to go with those received previously this season. Sian has already officiated on a UEFA tournament in Serbia. Subsequent to that Sian has officiated on a match in the UEFA Womens Champions League and just recently was one of the officials appointed to the 'Varsity' match. Today, official notification was received that Sian is one of the Assistant Referee's on this season's FA Women's Cup Final to be played at Bristol City FC on 26th May when Birmingham City will oppose Chelsea or Arsenal.

Brian King commented. "On behalf of the Hellenic League and Oxfordshire FA I have passed on congratulations to Sian who, when I spoke to her, was very bubbly and might well have been 'bouncing off walls'. "

Life As A Sunday League Referee - 17 April

The FA have told BBC Newsbeat there are more people qualifying as football referees than ever before.

There are now 27,000 refs in England, with more than 7,000 of those aged between 14 and 19. There's also been an increase in Scotland, where the Scottish FA say there are now more than 2,600 officials.

Newsbeat's been to watch 17-year-old Ed Henderson take charge of a Sunday league match between Seer Green and Jager Athletic in Buckinghamshire. He hopes to one day referee in the Premier League.

The link below is part of a BBC Newsbeat piece on refereeing in local football. Ed Henderson also operates on the Uhlsport Hellenic League as an assistant and Division Two Referee.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/17723344

Cirencester To Drop Down ? - 13 April

Cirencester Town's fixture in the Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division tomorrow may take a back seat for the small contingent of loyal Centurions fans, who will be still mulling over the club's future.

An open meeting last night was due to discuss the club's long-term future, with a drop to the Hellenic League one of the items up for discussion. With long-term club chairman Steve Abbley considering taking more of a back seat after ploughing over £200,000 into the club in 16 years, a number of options are due to be discussed.

Dropping out of the Southern League and into the Uhlsport Hellenic League will reduce travelling and officials costs, as well as allow for a significant reduction in the first-team playing budget. The club already operate their Development Team in Division One West of the Hellenic League. The Development team is linked to the successful academy which had produced current Football League players James Constable and Chris Zebroski.

Step 5/6 Leagues Review - 21 March

The FA have circulated a Press Release in respect of progress in discussions regarding re-structuring of Step 5 football.

Release
The Step 5/6 Review Group met at Wembley Stadium on Monday (19 March) to consider the responses received from County FAs, Leagues, Clubs and others following the recent round of consultative meetings held around the Country. 

The Review Group were appreciative of the contributions received to date.

The Review Group will be requesting further information and will meet again on 19 April with a view to finalising their report to the Leagues Committee.  An additional meeting of the Leagues Committee will be held in early May to consider this Report.
Ends

Hellenic League General Manager Brian King comments. " The document issued by the FA says nothing pertinent to the possible outcome of a Step 5 re-structure. The next meeting and further information is eagerly awaited".

Emmans Milestone - 11 March

Hellenic League Referee Ray Emmans has just reached the milestone of officiating 900 times on the Hellenic League with over half of these as Referee.

Ray’s first game was between Thatcham Town and Burnham back in the 70s, when Red and Yellow cards were what you played with!  Ray also managed 300 games on the Ryman League, officated on the Berks & Bucks FA Senior Cup Final between Wycombe Wanderers and Aylesbury United and also Centenary game between the FA and Isthmian League.
Ray still enjoys his Refereeing and does not intend hanging up his boots just yet.

The image shows Hellenic League President Mike Jenkins presenting a Long Service award to Ray Emmans a few years ago!!

OFA Semi-Final Draw At Kassam - 1 March

Both Ardley and Thame United's attention will be drawn to the Kassam Stadium straight after their Hellenic League games on Saturday.

The Oxfordshire Football Association will be making the draw for the semi-final places in the Senior Cup at the Kassam straight after the Oxford United v Swindon Town local derby. Ardley and Thame are representing the Hellenic League in the Oxfordshire County blue riband competition, along with the tthe two other semi-finalists North Leigh and Oxford City.

Past Almonds Supremo Joins Mango's - 27 February

Evo-Stik Southern League Division One South & West side Mangotsfield United have announced the appointment to the board with immediate effect of Bob Jenkins as vice chairman.

Bob (pictured) comes to Cossham Street after a successful period as chairman of now defunct Almondsbury Town, during which time the club gained promotion from The Hellenic League to the Southern League for the first time in the club's history. The Almond's had no option but to disband as they were unable to secure a suitable ground despite considerable efforts.

Mangotsfield United chairman Mike Richardson told the club's official website: “The appointment of Bob Jenkins as vice chairman has to be viewed as a major coup for the club. Bob brings with him a wealth of experience and knowledge along with a number of ideas of how to take the club forward and move on. This is a fantastic appointment for Mangotsfield United as we look for the club to progress after what has been a testing time for all those involved. As well as having the relevant experience and knowledge Bob is also very hard working and is a much liked and respected figure in the non league football scene.”

Richardson concluded by saying: “Everybody at Mangotsfield United is looking forward to working with Bob as the club looks to develop over the coming years."

Hellenic Ref London Marathon Favourite! - 24 February

The sporting world was left in shock today when Virgin London Marathon Race Director, Dave Bedford, announced the latest athlete to April's race field.

For full details of this astonishing item see this link www.marathonnewstv.com

Application for The FA Cup, FA Trophy, FA Vase and FA Youth Cup
Season 2012-2013

Clubs can now apply to enter The FA Cup, FA Trophy, FA Vase and FA Youth Cup for season 2012-2013 online via the link below. On successful completion of the application, an automatic email confirmation will be sent to the participant from The FA.

Please note that the application is only available for online completion and payment by credit or debit card.

The application can be accessed from this link
www.thefa.com/Competitions/CompetitionAdministration2012-13.aspx

The closing date for applications is Sunday 1 April 2012.

Crisp & Even - 12 February

A second weekend without football in a row. Snowfall on Thursday evening and an anticipated heavy frost on Friday night caused pitches to be declared unfit for purpose late on Friday afternoon.

The image shown was taken at Binfield's Stubbs Lane ground on Friday morning, Binfield club secretary Rob Challis commented; "no chance of playing on Saturday!". Several other images were sent to the Hellenic League office declaring pitches not fit for purpose with not one call or e-mail received saying there was a possibility of play on Saturday. Hence the decision was taken by the League executive to again postpone the complete program for the weekend

Fixture co-ordinator Dave Jesson has another busy weekend to look forward too organising the re-scheduling of the 36 postponed fixtures.

Shortwood United's FA Vase 5th Round tie against Northern League opponents Ashington on Sunday 12th February was one of the first to have a postponement declared and will be re-scheduled for Saturday 18th February.

Oxfordshire FA Futsal Fives League - 9 February

This may provide an opportunity for players who are no longer involved in the 11 a side form of the game?

Through The FA Futsal Fives, The FA is launching a series of indoor adult Futsal leagues across the country to encourage more players and teams to play this exciting format of five-a-side football.

Oxfordshire FA have been granted a license from the FA to deliver a local FA Futsal Fives league and are looking forward to launching this national initiative to local adult teams from across the region. Details of the Oxfordshire FA Futsal Fives League are below:

Starts: Sunday 26th February 2012
Time: 13.00-16.00
Venue: The Park Sports Centre, Wheatley, Wheatley Park School, Holton, Oxfordshire, OX33 1QZ.
Cost: £30 per team per week
Game Duration: 40 Minutes

Simon Walker, FA National Manager for Small Sided Football stated "The FA Futsal Fives programme will give more adults across the country an opportunity to play Futsal in a locally organised league run to the FA's highest standards. Futsal is an exciting format of small sided football played throughout the world. We hope that through our FA Futsal Fives Leagues we can give players and teams a fantastic experience so they develop a real love for the game."

For more information or to register a team please contact Owain Prosser on FAFutsalFives@OxfordshireFA.com or 01993 894402.

Berks & Bucks FA Charity Golf Day - 8 February

The Berks & Bucks FA announce their first charity Golf Day at the picturesque Newbury & Crookham Golf Club in aid of the Thames Valley & Chiltern Air Ambulance Service.

This quality golf course, will provide a challenge to entrants with a variety of abilities. Berks & Bucks FA are hoping to raise funds for Thames Valley & Chiltern Air Ambulance, a charity which often finds itself called out to emergencies on both football pitches & golf courses. For more information please visit: Charity Golf Day

Weekend Off For Hellenic Football - 6 February

Frost caused all Uhlsport Hellenic Football League games to be postponed at the weekend, The Swindon Advertiser reports how it affected the clubs in their area.

Division One West, Wootton Bassett's players got Saturday off due to the cold weather. Now boss Dave Turner has given them the all-clear to skip training tomorrow as well. The Rylands Way outfit would normally train on a Tuesday evening but with Swindon playing Barnet in the Southern Area final of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, Turner has decided to give his players the opportunity to watch from the stands at the County Ground. "I'm giving them Tuesday off because we're going to struggle for the top three now," said Turner. "Most of them want to see Swindon play and I might even have a little look myself to be honest. We don't pay them and they have got a great attitude, so we've told them to go and watch the football and enjoy it."

Malmesbury Victoria manager Simon Winstone was disappointed that his side did not have the chance to continue their recent good form. He said: "We've been on a run and you want to keep it going, especially when it's a local derby".

Elsewhere in Division One West, New College's trip to CirencesterTown was also called off due to the freezing conditions. New College first-team coach Rob Hopkins said: "We've had the lads in four times for training this week, so they were free to enjoy the Six Nations as I did."

Cricklade and Purton's second-round Supplementary Cup clash, which was previously abandoned following a head injury to Ed Jose, was also called off. Purton boss Chris Pethick is now hoping to arrange a friendly with another local side as his team have had little football recently. He said: "It's always disappointing to miss a game on a Saturday afternoon, especially when we never had a game last week. It's quite a big break to be honest with you, with our next game being next Saturday."

It is a different story at Cricklade, where chairman Alisdair Ross is hoping a break from action will help the squad recover from a spate of injuries. "I thought all week that the game would be off," he said. "We've got a few carrying injuries so it should do them good to have a rest."

Both last-16 Bluefin Insurers Hellenic League Challenge Cup games involving Swindon area local sides were postponed, those being Fairford's meeting with Binfield and Highworth's clash with Ardley. Highworth boss Dave Webb said: "To be fair to the Hellenic League they made a decision on Friday to call all the games off, so at least they made a decision early. You just knew it was never going to be on, when I went to work Friday the temperature was minus eight."

Shrivenham had no game scheduled so were unaffected by the fixture postponements this weekend.

Step 5 Restructure Consultation - 19 January

The Hellenic League General Manager Brian King, along with representatives of clubs attended a regional meeting Sunday 15 January.

Commenting on the meeting, which was held at the Thurrock Hotel, Aveley, Brian King said: "Sunday's gathering went reasonably well with many positive comments but also, as expected, some negative comments from clubs from a particular competition. The Hellenic League is supportive of the FA restructuring at step five and six and has supported the restructure from the start. The board also believe there must be more opportunities for clubs at step five to progress and believe the number of promotion places to step four should be increased to 18 and also ensure that clubs that finish in a relegation position at step four must be relegated and not as now retained to replace clubs that go out of existence."

The FA says ground regulations for each division will remain the same and tier six will be discussed if the proposal is successful.

Ascot United, Reading Town, Binfield and Abingdon Town were amongst the clubs in attendance at Sunday's meeting. Moles manager Mark Tallentire said: "I think it's a fantastic idea. I think it will improve the football. It cuts down our travelling and there'll be a lot more local derbies."

Binfield chairman Bob Bacon added: "It's important to remember that it's still a work in progress and that these are only proposals at the moment. But it would be great for the fans and great for the players to play in front of more people."

Wokingham & Emmbrook boss Roger Herridge said: "I can only see it being a good thing, it would mean less travelling and encourage people to go and watch more games."

Further meetings are being planned this month and early February where league members are asked to raise any concerns about the proposals.

Croydon Resign From Isthmian League - 19 January

Jenna Manji owner of Croydon Athletic instructed the club to write to the Isthmian League to resign from the competition with immediate effect. The Isthmian league’s board had given a stay of execution in the hope the football club could sort out their difficulties after they were unable to fulfil fixtures in December.

The Football club joined the League back in 1997 and played in Division Three, where they remained until 2002 when the championship was won, scoring 138 goals in forty-two games in the process. Since then they have played in Division One or Division One South apart from the 2010-11 season which saw the club play in the Premier Division but they were only able to finish in twenty-first place.

Croydon Athletic Football Club regret this has happened and have apologised to the their fellow Ryman League clubs for any inconvenience caused by circumstances beyond the control of the management committee. They have also thanked the many players, officials, volunteers and supporters who have been part of the Football Club since it was formed in 1986 and who have given tirelessly to it over that time.

The Isthmian (Ryman) League has now received an email from Croydon Athletic Football Club which will enable the Board to make a decision about the Club. This will be considered at the Board meeting to be held on 26 January and a further announcement will be made after that meeting.

Promotion Candidates - 15 January

The Football Association has released the list of 64 clubs from Step 5 who have applied for promotion to Step 4.

Views On Step 5 Restructure - 13 January

With the FA announcement of reviewing the structure of Step 5 Football the local press are starting to solicit the views of teams in their area.

The Swindon Advertiser reports that Shrivenham boss John Fisher slammed the proposals and said he would not be interested in being a manager in the Western Division, due to the increased travel. "When we go to Bracknell, a couple of lads usually drop out because they don't like travelling, so what is it going to be like going to Barnstaple?" said Fisher. "The Hellenic League has always suited me and even now with teams coming in from towards London, it's not too bad. But this is a no go for Swindon lads and for me as a manager it's definitely a no go. Hopefully it won't materialise and common sense will prevail."

Highworth manager Dave Webb, told the Advertiser that he had mixed feelings about the proposals. "We would maybe have a chance to move into that league (Western Division), but it would be extremely difficult," he said. "It would require a complete restructure of the way Highworth Town would be run. We'd have to get more sponsorship and would be running almost like a Southern League club. The quality of football might be slightly improved, but with that comes a lot more travelling and commitment. Going down to places like Devon in midweek will be extremely challenging for players at this level, because their work has to come first."

In the Kent press Deal Town chairman Dayle Melody has expressed his views."The amount of travelling we would have to do and long distance midweek games would crucify the players. Getting to games is a problem now. We are not helping our carbon footprint either by sending six cars to places like Bromley – where Greenwich Borough and Holmesdale play – for games watched by only 20 people."

Kent Hurlimann League chairman Denise Richmond has admitted she is unsure whether the FA's restructuring plans will help step 5 clubs thrive. "I'm left with mixed emotions by the proposals," said Ms Richmond. "It does answer the 14 leagues into 12 issue but it also raises more questions than answers. Are we making it difficult for clubs at this level to survive? For example, Peacehaven have been grouped with the clubs in Kent and that could have an adverse effect on them. However, the strength in depth of these leagues, that could have as many as 24 or 25 teams initially until issues settle down, could also be a strength for step 5 football which has suffered in many areas, including Kent, as many clubs progress up the non-league pyramid."

Details of the intial suggestions of restructuring and how it could reflect on Hellenic League clubs can be viewed on this link Step 5 Restructure

National League System - Step 5/6 Review Meeting - 10 January

Thieves Target Youth Soccer Club - 10 January

Burglars and vandals are repeatedly attacking a youth football club to steal goalposts, wiring, piping and even the changing room sink.

The Oxford Mail reports that the yobs have caused damage worth thousands of pounds at Littlemore Youth FC’s clubhouse on the Cowley recreation ground site, off Long Lane and Herschel Crescent. The club has vowed to continue to hold home games despite the changing rooms being left without power. On December 16, locks to the changing rooms were damaged as thieves tried to get into the clubhouse.

Raiders again damaged the locks and smashed up the urinals between 1pm on December 20 and 9am on December 21. The thieves stole a sink unit from the changing rooms before pulling copper piping away, causing the changing room to flood with water. They also stripped away copper cable from the electrics, leaving the changing rooms without power.

Between 40 and 50 children turn out each week to play in the club’s under-10, under-11 and under-13 teams but currently have no changing room. Chairman Peter Kinch said: “We are all very despondent. We have cleaned up a bit, but we’ve got no electricity – they took the cable and the fuses out. All of that was redone last year and cost nearly £3,000.”

It’s not the first time criminals have caused havoc at the club. Mr Kinch said: “Earlier in the year we had the brand new goal crossbars stolen. They are probably selling them for scrap.”

He speculated that the thieves returned to take the new goalposts, which the club ran a fundraising campaign to buy. The new goals were not stored in the changing room on the night of the break-in.

Mr Kinch said: “You just think ‘why do we do it? ' What’s the point of carrying on?’ But we will carry on – we’ve been here long enough.”

Concern is growing over UK scrap metal thefts as public buildings like churches and schools are hit by criminals eager to cash in on rising prices. The Government has pledged action including compulsory registration for those selling scrap, identity checks and a possible ban on cash payments.

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Must For Spectators, Managers & Officials! - 5 January 2012

No doubt the glint of silver will be reflecting around the stadiums, when match officials, spectators and team management reach into their pockets to check whether the offside decision was correct!

There is no excuse for incorrect or disputed offside decisions now. Problems resolved, all for a 50 pence investment.

In January 2009 the Royal Mint launched its biggest ever competition, inviting the British public to design a series of new 50p coins. Thousands of excellent designs were received from all over the UK, featuring all 29 sports of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The best designs were selected and now they’ve been made into coins for you to collect as lasting mementoes of London 2012.

The Football 50p coin, designed by Neil Wolfson, comes in a fun and vibrant pack, making the London 2012 Sports Collection a special set of coins for all the family.

The coin will be in circulation, but a Collector Album is also available with slots to house each of the 29 coins - a brilliant way to build your very own memento of this once-in-a-lifetime sporting occasion. More information on www.royalmint.com

Webmasters thoughts: "I can envisage the treasurers of many clubs making sure that officials expenses are paid purely in 50 pence pieces of this design!"

Dallas Cup 2011 - 10 August

By Andrew Hickman

I was very fortunate to be nominated by the Middlesex Referees Academy to be their candidate for the Dallas Cup selection process. The Dallas Cup is a prestigious International youth tournament, from U-13 up to an U-19 Super Group, with professional clubs travelling from around the world to compete. I attended an interview against 5 other candidates from different counties in the London area, where we were asked questions such as, how will you communicate with your fellow officials and players who don't speak English, and how will you cope with refereeing around 3 games a day in 40 degree heat? I obviously managed to answer these well as the day after I received a phone call from Jeff Pettitt, our London Development Group coach, telling me I was the successful candidate.

I met the other referees selected for the tournament and the coaches at a dinner in Manchester. They were from all over the country, each one representing their regional development group. We all clicked straight away, which settled any nerves I had and meant we could relax and get to know each other before we embarked on our adventure. We arrived in Dallas safely, which was a relief to me as it was my first long haul flight. The first day was spent meeting our homestay families and settling into our new surroundings. Instead of staying together in a hotel, the Dallas Cup operates a homestay system which meant we stayed with a local family with one or two other referees. I stayed with a referee from Derbyshire, and despite the language barrier, we got on really well! Our house was absolutely massive, with its own swimming pool, games room and upstairs lounge! That evening we all met up for a BBQ with the host families and we used it to bond with each other and find out all sorts of strange things about each other. They even made me play a tune on a trumpet they found, as this was my interesting fact!

The first week was spent acclimatising to the temperature and humidity, which was about 30-35 degrees, a shock to the system after coming from a rather less sunny English spring! We trained each morning, the sessions led by the three Football League referees that had also been sent to the tournament. These sessions worked us all hard and comprised of a recovery session, a sprint session and completing the FIFA fitness test. We then spent the afternoons sightseeing, going to places such as the JFK museum to see where he was shot; the Fort Worth Stockyards, a famous rodeo town where cowboys still herd the longhorn cattle down the street and a trip to a Western Bar, where dressing in cowboy attire, including hats, and dancing were compulsory!

The refereeing began the day before the tournament, as I was selected to referee a local youth game, assisted by two of my development group colleagues. The game went well, but was completely different from the English style of play, as I had no issues with dissent (they all called me Sir!) and there was a greater emphasis on technical rather than physical play. The only problem we had was with the heat and hydration. This taught us a major lesson in just how important it was to hydrate properly before our game during the tournament. The tournament itself was a massive learning curve for me. I observed and officiated with all kinds of referees, from local league American officials, to English Football League and FIFA referees from counties such as Canada, Pakistan, Qatar and New Zealand. During the group stages, I refereed 3 games, assisted on 5 and was 4th official for 2. My favourite games including running the line to Bobby Madley, one of our Football League colleagues, on an U-19 Super Group game between Tigres from Mexico and Vancouver Whitecaps from Canada. The game was very competitive and Bobby gave a master class in using body language and non-verbal communication to interact with player with limited English. He also demonstrated his ability to glide around the pitch, making it look like he was using no energy at all, but always being in a credible position to make the correct decision. It was also nice to receive a great assessment from Trevor Simpson, the Football League coach.

My favourite middle was an U-19 game between the Royal Navy from England and SKHY from Trinidad and Tobago. As you can imagine with an English team, there was a bit more dissent than in previous games, but this gave me a chance to practice my management techniques. It was also by far the most competitive game I had done during the week and had to watch for simulation as well as the little pulls and pushes in the penalty area. After the game, I received a thorough debrief which gave me a great deal of confidence in my ability, but also gave me many development points and small tips to improve my game, including things that had never been mentioned to me before. I was lucky enough to be appointed to an U-17 Quarter-final and an U-19 Semi-final, both as Assistant Referee. The Quarter-final was by far the most exciting game, between a Mexican team and a Brazilian team. This game was quite bad tempered from the start, but really heated up after the Brazilian side took the lead in the 83rd minute. Whilst the Brazilian team were celebrating, one of their players said something to an opponent. The opponent promptly turned round and punched him in the face. Nobody witnessed this as they were concentrating on the celebrating players, except for me. I called the referee over and the player received his marching orders. This only heightened the bad feeling between the players and after another red card for the Mexicans, the full time whistle blew. The Mexicans came flying of the bench and surrounded the referee. They were protesting aggressively to both the referee and myself, as I had given a close offside decision against the Mexicans close to the end of the game, none of which I could understand! The security finally dispersed them, leaving me with a massive adrenaline high.

I learnt so much from this experience and it has left me with a wealth of memories and knowledge, which will stay with me for a long time. These two weeks were the best in my career and if any of the young referees get the chance to apply for this tournament, they should grasp it with both hands, as they will come back enriched both as a referee and as a person.